Killer 'wandering' bull shuts down airport in Vietnam

Hanoi: A bull whose roaming had closed the airport serving one of Vietnam’s tourist cities was captured on Tuesday, and authorities said it may have killed an elderly villager.

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The animal was spotted on Monday morning in woods that border Phu Bai Airport’s runway in the central city of Hue. Nearly 100 police officers, soldiers and rangers were mobilized to stop the bull from crossing onto the runway.

Airport director Do Chi Thanh said the airport was closed most of Tuesday for safety reasons. Thanh said bulls haven’t been spotted in the area before, and it’s not clear where the animal came from.

The bull was tranquilized and removed from the airport Tuesday afternoon to be released in the wild, deputy airport director Le Van Loc said. The facility has reopened, but eight flights were affected.

Hue was Vietnam’s ancient capital, and its citadel is a UNESCO heritage site.

Local village chief Nguyen Hai said an 85-year-old woman was found dead with severe facial wounds outside her home on Monday afternoon. The bull had been seen in the village and is suspected of butting her.